celebration dub is based on original recordings that I made in Varanasi during a trip to India in 2003. A wedding procession winds its way through the small winding streets of the old town. The wedding band accompanies the procession and plays in a jazzy style.
I used the original recording as a basis for various live improvisations, converting the whole piece into a dub-like form. I arranged, sampled and reworked parts of the various improvisations, resulting in a deconstructed version of Indian wedding music.
As a guest in another country, one may love the ceremonies, but one will always be outside the culture, even if one takes part in the celebration. celebration dub shows the distance that a stranger feels during such experiences. But the piece also shows the adaptation and processing by one’s own culture.
The composition can be found online at SoundLAB VII.